TIRAMISU

Makes: 10 cups of approximately 80 millilitres each

Ingredients:

• For the Cookie Base: The quantities given make a batch of 40, each about 1.5″ -2″ in diameter. They can be refrigerated in an airtight container for a week to ten days.
  • Eggs – 2 separated
  • Castor sugar – 60 grams
  • Plain Flour (Maida) – 40 grams
  • Vanilla – 1 teaspoon

• For the Custard Cream Cheese:
  • Milk – 2 cups
  • Custard powder- about 5 tablespoons (we need a really thick custard)
  • Sugar – 6 tablespoons (increase or decrease as per preference)
  • Mascarpone Cheese or Britannia Cream Cheese – 6 tablespoons, softened before use
  • Kahlúa or any Coffee liqueur – 2 tablespoons
  • Amul Fresh cream – 6 tablespoons, use only the thick portion of the cream.
• Strong Coffee decoction – ½ cup
• Dark rum or brandy – 2 tablespoons or more (depending on how boozy you want the base to be)
• Small dessert cups, wine glasses – 10

Method:

• For the Cookie Base:
  • Using an electric beater whip the egg whites until they turn foamy.
  • Add half the sugar, a teaspoon of vanilla and continue whipping the whites until they form stiff peaks. Set aside.
  • Whisk the egg yolks along with the rest of the sugar until pale and creamy.
  • Gently fold the flour into the yolk mixture until well incorporated and you have no flour streaks.
  • Lastly, very gently fold in the whipped egg whites in 3-4 batches, into the yolk and flour mixture. The batter has to remain light and airy.
  • Using a piping bag with a large round nozzle, pipe the batter in tiny circles about 1½” across, on to a greased baking sheet and bake at 130°C for about 40 minutes. Space out the circles as they will expand a little.

• For the Custard Cream cheese:
  • We need a thick custard for this.
  • To ½ a cup of room temperature milk in a bowl, add the custard powder and stir to a smooth paste.
  • Heat the rest of the milk along with the sugar on medium flame, stirring all along until the sugar dissolves and the milk comes to a simmer.
  • Whisk in the custard and milk paste taking care to not have any lumps of custard paste in the saucepan.
  • Cook the custard until it thickens.
  • When done, take it off the heat and allow it to cool completely to room temperature.
  • Once the custard is completely cool, whisk in the softened cream cheese, thick cream and coffee liqueur until smooth.
  • Pour the Custard Cream cheese into a piping bag with a wide round nozzle or just snip out the end of the bag like I did and refrigerate for later.

Assemble the Tiramisu:

• Line up the dessert cups.
• In a bowl mix the rum and coffee decoction.
• Dunk the cookie in the coffee mix and lay one at the bottom of each glass.
• Pull out the Custard cream cheese from the refrigerator, pipe some onto the coffee rum-infused cookie, top up with another coffee rum-infused cookie followed by more Custard cream cheese.

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• Using a sieve, dust the top with cocoa powder or sprinkle on chocolate shavings and top up with a biscuit.

• Chill before serving.

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Notes:

• Alternatives for:
  • Biscuit – Use a cookie of your choice or slices of vanilla sponge cut into circles.
  • Mascarpone cheese or Britania Cream Cheese – Cheese spread.
• The cookies made here (ladyfingers, savoiardi, sponge fingers) are usually piped into 3″- 4″ long finger shapes (ladyfingers), baked and use to make one large Tiramisu. I baked them in little circle shapes so as to use them in individual cups without having to break up larger ones.
• These are very light cookies, therefore when dunking them in the coffee rum mix do it very quickly so as not to make the cookie soggy.